Political Ideologies Reflected in S.E.A. Write Award-Winning Short Stories

Abstract

        This study aimed to analyze the political ideologies represented in the S.E.A. Write Award-winning short stories published between 1981 to 2023, consisting of 15 volumes with a total of 177 stories. The analysis employed the theories of Discourse theory, Power theory, Manipulation theory, Ideology theory, and Political Ideology theory as its analytical framework. The findings revealed six political ideologies represented in the texts: liberalism, feminism, ecologism, conservatism, nationalism, and fascism. In addition, two significant ideological conflicts were identified: nationalism versus liberalism and fascism versus liberalism.

            The research revealed not only the diversity of political ideologies in S.E.A. Write short stories but also the evolving social dynamics of Thai society over the past four decades. This study demonstrated that literature was not merely an art form for entertainment, but a contested arena of Discourse theory and Power theory negotiation embedded within society. This further underscored the role of S.E.A. Write short stories as an ideological arena that revealed the intellectual conflicts of Thai society in different periods, reflecting transitions and struggles to define the direction of Thai politics and culture. Accordingly, this study was academically and socially significant, as it advanced the understanding of literature as both a medium of communication and a site of ideological construction. It further underscored literature’s role as a cultural record that illuminates the interrelation between literary production, art, and social Power theory.